Author: Chen Yue
Source: Historical Review, No. 5, 2021
After more than 200 years, the Qing government established an administrative governance system covering the whole territory of Xinjiang and going deep into the grassroots, realized the integration of the administrative systems of Xinjiang with other provinces, promoted the economic and cultural development of the people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang, ensured the stability of the frontier, and consolidated the reunification of the motherland.
From the Han Dynasty to the middle and late Qing Dynasty, the vast area including the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains was collectively known as the Western Regions. Since the Han Dynasty, the Xinjiang region has officially become part of China's territory. The Two Han Dynasties set up institutions such as the Western Regions Capital Protectorate in Xinjiang for long-term effective jurisdiction, while the Tang Dynasty went further and implemented the county system in the local area. Since then, all the dynasties have regarded the Western Regions as their homeland and have focused on exercising jurisdiction over the region. During the Qianlong period, the Qing government quelled the Dzungar rebellion and established the borders of northwest China, and the central government implemented a more systematic governance policy for the Xinjiang region. In 1762, General Ili was established and a military government system was implemented. In 1884, it was established as a province in Xinjiang, taking the meaning of "new return to the homeland" and renaming the western region "Xinjiang". An important experience of the Qing Dynasty in governing Xinjiang and maintaining national unity was that the unified administrative system covered all aspects and went deep into the grassroots.
Quell the rebellion and unify the western regions
At the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, the Mongol Dzungars of Verat maintained contact with the central government on the one hand, and expanded their power in the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains on the other. In the tenth year of the Kangxi Dynasty (1671), Gardan seized the right to rule the Dzungars, and the following year, he went to the Qing government and asked for permission to inherit the throne of his brother Sangha, which was approved by the Kangxi Emperor. Since then, Kaldan has paid tribute to the central government every year. At the same time, however, he expanded his power and annexed the neighboring tribes by force, occupying Hami and Turfan successively, and destroying the Yarkand Khanate on the southern tianshan road.
Kaldan also intensified, and in the twenty-ninth year of the Kangxi Dynasty, he led his army south under the pretext of pursuing the Khalkha Mongols. The Kangxi Emperor personally conquered the throne and won the Battle of UlanButong, and then defeated Gardan at Zhaomodo. In the thirty-sixth year of the Kangxi Dynasty, Gardan fell ill and died, and the eldest son of the Sangh, Ceyu Alabutan, succeeded him as the leader of the Dzungars and continued to fight against the imperial court. During this period, the people of Hami, Turpan and other places were overwhelmed and supported the Qing army in attacking the Dzungars. In the 37th and 59th years of the Kangxi Dynasty, the Qing court successively organized banners and set up officials in Hami, Turpan and other places.
The picture shows the "Pingding DzungarLe Inscription" erected during the Qianlong period
In the fifth year of Yongzheng (1727), Tserry Alabutan died, and his eldest son Kaldanze zero succeeded to the throne, he inherited his father's strategy against the Qing court, even at the expense of colluding with Tsarist Russia. In the tenth year of Qianlong (1745), Gardance died of zero, and civil unrest occurred in the Dzungars, and many people could not bear the pain of war and surrendered to the imperial court. In view of this, the Qianlong Emperor believed that "in the future, it is not possible to take advantage of the situation", and decided to send troops to complete the unfinished business of his father and ancestors.
In the twentieth year of Qianlong, the Qing army marched in the west and north. The Dingbei general Bandi and the Dingxi general Yongchang, with the help of Taiji Amir Sana of the Huit department of the Weilat Mongol Huit, eliminated the main force of the Dzungar clan through the Battle of Ili Geleng, captured its leader Dawaqi, and released the size and Zhuo who had been placed under house arrest by the Dzungars in Ili. Soon after, however, Amir Sana rebelled with Dahe and Zhuo, and the Qing Dynasty had no choice but to send troops to the northwest again to quell the rebellion, and the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains returned to stability again.
The integration of the military and the government should be adapted to local conditions
In the process of recovering the western region, the Qianlong monarchs were also constantly pondering the strategy of the aftermath, hoping to stabilize the local social order, consolidate the northwest border defense, and safeguard national unity through a reasonable system.
First of all, the Qing court adopted a military government system that integrated military and government, and set up an eight-banner garrison system in the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains, dividing the four major military and political regions of Ili, Kashgar, Urumqi, and Tarbahatai. In the 27th year of Qianlong, the Qing government set up the general Ili, stationed in Huiyuan City (present-day Ili Huocheng), not only directly in charge of the military and political affairs of the Ili region, but also in charge of all the affairs of the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains, and was the highest military and political chief in the local area. In the 24th year of Qianlong, the Qing government set up a kashgar counselor minister, and in 28 years, he became the prime minister and the minister counsellor for xinjiang affairs, who was still stationed in Kashgar, in charge of Burke at all levels of The Hui Xinjiang, and was responsible for managing the military and political affairs of the Tianshan South Road. In the 29th year of Qianlong, he set up the Counselor General of Tarbahatai to oversee the local Eight Banners garrison and people. In the 38th year of Qianlong, the Qing government promoted the vice capital of Urumqi to the capital and ruled over the affairs of the Tianshan Eastern Road Army. The Prime Minister's Counsellor for Xinjiang Affairs, the Counsellor General of Talbahatai, and the Urumqi Metropolitan Government were all under the control of General Ili.
Second, according to local characteristics, the Qing government also established a variety of different grass-roots governance systems in Xinjiang.
One is the Burke system. The Qing government retained Burke at all levels of the grass-roots society on Tianshan South Road, and at the same time reformed it, including abolishing Burke's hereditary lineage and being elected by the imperial court; implementing a recusal system that did not allow Burke to serve locally; separating the administration from religion and practicing the Burke specialty; demarcating Burke's grades and clarifying his position; implementing the Burke regular pilgrimage system and going to Beijing in shifts; and so on. These measures led Burke from a hereditary aristocrat to a local official appointed by the Qing government.
The second is the Zazak system. Also known as the alliance flag system, that is, the Mongolian ministry of the formation of flags, each banner set up Zasak, also known as the flag chief; several flags or a flag into a league, set up an alliance chief. The Qianlong Emperor inherited the policy of compiling banners and setting up officials in Hami, Turpan and other places during the Kangyong period, and after pacifying the Dzungars, he implemented the Zazak system for the former Weirat Mongol tribes. In the thirty-sixth year of Qianlong, because of the oppression of Tsarist Russia, turbat Khan Wobasi led his troops to return to the east, and the Qing government also divided it into ten Zazaks for resettlement. In addition, the Zazakh system is also implemented for nomadic tribes such as Brut and Kazakh. Under this system, although officials could be hereditary, they had to be appointed by the Qing court, and officials at all levels were subject to the control of Qing officials, and important events had to be reported to General Ili and so on.
The third is the state and county system. In the 38th year of Qianlong, the Qing government moved Bali Kundao to Dihua Prefecture (present-day Urumqi). In the forty-first year of Qianlong, the Qing government officially renamed Bali KunDao to Zhendi Dao, which had jurisdiction over Dihua Prefecture and Zhenxi Prefecture, and initially established a prefecture and county system. ZhendiDao and its subordinate prefectures and counties were under the dual jurisdiction of the Viceroy of Shaanxi and Gansu and the Governor of Urumqi, that is, the Governor of Shaanxi and Gansu was under the jurisdiction of the Viceroy of Shaanxi and Gansu, and the military and political affairs were administered by the Urumqi Metropolitan Government.
After years of practice, the Qing government formed a governance system in the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains, under the jurisdiction of General Ili, and implemented the System of Restraint, Zazak, and Prefecture and County in different regions, reflecting the distinctive characteristics of "setting up governance according to government" and "setting up rule according to situation" and returning to unity. At the same time, the Qing government implemented a legal governance and entry system to strengthen the national identity of all ethnic groups in the local area.
Aftermath of the establishment of the province, a new chapter was determined
At the end of the Qing Dynasty, under the condition of internal and external troubles, the Qing government focused on resisting foreign aggressive forces, recovering the Xinjiang region, and at the same time establishing provinces in the local area to safeguard the reunification of the motherland.
During the Tongzhi period, a popular uprising broke out in the northwest, and the Qing government's rule in the local area was seriously impacted. Internal strife has not receded, and external troubles have followed. The Kokand officer Agubai took the opportunity to invade and occupy Urumqi and Turfan; the Russians also took advantage of the fire and robbery and sent troops to forcibly occupy the Ili region. The Northwest faces an unprecedented crisis.
In the third year of Guangxu (1877), the Qing government ordered Zheng zheng to lead an army to retake the northwestern Governor of Shaanxi and Gansu and the Minister of Qincha Zuo Zongtang to plan a strategy for governing Xinjiang. In view of the shortcomings of the previous lack of in-depth governance of grass-roots social governance, Zuo Zongtang proposed, "The terrain of the cover is not different from the past and the present, and the construction is different from the cause." Poor and flexible for a long time, according to the conditions of the times, things are inherently intolerable", please establish provinces in the Xinjiang region to strengthen the governance of the frontier.
After the reconquest of Xinjiang, Tan Zhonglin, the governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, and Liu Jintang, the minister of Qincha who supervised Xinjiang's military and political affairs, proposed different plans for the establishment of the province. After careful consideration, the Qing court finally adopted Liu Jintang's plan, setting up four roads in Xinjiang: Zhendi Dao, Aksu Dao, Kashgar Dao, and Ita Dao. After several years of preparation, Xinjiang Province was formally established in the 10th year of Guangxu and Liu Jintang was appointed as the first inspector of Xinjiang. As a result, the Qing Dynasty's governance of Xinjiang entered a new stage.
At the beginning of the establishment of the province, due to the sparse population of Xinjiang, there were fewer prefectures and counties under the four provinces. With the development of society, the reproduction of population, and the increase of government affairs, the Qing government continued to adjust the administrative structure of Xinjiang, and strengthened the establishment of prefectures on the basis of four provinces, and by the 28th year of Guangxu, there were six provinces (Dihua, Ili, Shache, Shule, Yanqi, Wensu), two prefectures (Kucha, Khotan), eight directly subordinate departments (Zhenxi, Turpan, Hami, Kulkhala Wusu, Jinghe, Tarbahatai, Ingishar, Ushi), and a general's palace (Ili), forming a hierarchical and staggered administrative division system. Basically realize the unification of Xinjiang's political system with other provinces.
It is worth noting that while the Qing government was establishing a province in Xinjiang, it carried out major reforms to the local garrison system: abolishing the military government system, abolishing the garrison ministers in various places, and having the Xinjiang inspectors command the entire Xinjiang army in a unified way; retaining general Ili, but only having authority to manage the garrisons in Ili and Tarbahatai. At the same time, the restraint of the bo was abolished, and the township covenant was used instead, and its power was limited to assist grass-roots officials in governing the countryside. Schools have been set up in various parts of Xinjiang, bilingual education has been implemented, chinese language has been vigorously promoted, and scientific and cultural knowledge has been disseminated.
Historical experience is precious
After more than 200 years, the Qing government established an administrative governance system covering the whole territory of Xinjiang and going deep into the grass-roots level, realized the integration of the administrative systems of Xinjiang with other provinces, promoted the economic and cultural development of the people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang, ensured the stability of the frontier, and consolidated the reunification of the motherland, which has far-reaching historical enlightenment.
First, the governance of the frontier should be deepened into the grass-roots society. To strengthen the governance of the frontier, it is necessary not only to consider the strategic position of the frontier as a whole and formulate clear governance goals, but also to implement the governance measures to the grass-roots society, form a vertical management model of the central government-local government-grass-roots society, strengthen the implementation and implementation of governance, and ensure the stability and comprehensive development of the border society.
The picture shows the information picture of the 24-year large-character typeset edition of the Qing Guangxu "Rules for Returning to Xinjiang"
Second, strengthen the building of the legal system and make full use of legal means. The Qing government promulgated the "Great Qing Laws", "Li Fan Yuan Regulations", "Mongolian Laws", "Hui Xinjiang Regulations" in the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains, etc., bringing local governance into the legal track. This reflects the Qing government's insistence on the organic combination of national sovereignty and unification and governance with frontier characteristics when governing the northwest region.
Third, upholding the maintenance of sovereignty and social stability is regarded as the primary task. In the process of unifying the western regions by the Qing court, the Qing government demarcated the northwest territory and erected "Obo" or wooden signs on the border as boundary monuments to clearly safeguard national unity and territorial integrity. When there was turmoil in the local area, the Qing government would send troops to suppress the rebellion at the first time in order to restore social stability as soon as possible.
Fourth, adjust development plans according to the conditions of the times. In the middle of the Qianlong period in the northwest, the Qing government focused on maintaining stability in the local governance policy; after the social stability was basically stable, the Qing court vigorously improved the local social and economic conditions by implementing tun tian, restoring handicraft industry, developing commerce, and opening up the trade of the "foreign domain" ethnic groups; during the Tongzhi period, the northwest region was once in chaos, forcing the Qing court to use troops for decades; and after the establishment of Xinjiang at the end of the Qing Dynasty, it emphasized both stability and development.
Fifth, establish close ties between the northwest frontier and the central plains. The stability and development of the northwest frontier required the strong support of the central government and the central plains, so the Qing court adhered to the idea of "unity and rule" between Xinjiang and Shaanxi and Gansu, and brought eastern Xinjiang under the jurisdiction of the viceroy of Shaanxi and Gansu. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, Xinjiang Province was established, and the highest official named "Inspector of Gansu Xinjiang" was controlled by the governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, highlighting the Qing government's awareness of the overall situation in the governance of the northwest frontier.
Author Affilications: School of History, Northwestern University